Chapter 461

The evening sky was painted in hues of violet when Evelyn pulled up outside Sophia's apartment.

Sophia bounded down the steps wearing a denim pinafore dress, her twin braids swinging with each energetic step. She slid into the passenger seat with practiced ease, buckling up with a click. "Since when do you suddenly crave cocktails on a Tuesday night?"

Evelyn's fingers tightened around the steering wheel as she merged into traffic. A shadow crossed her face. "I need to talk."

Sophia studied her best friend's profile. "This is about Nathan, isn't it?" She frowned. "Weren't you two perfectly fine before the Stoslo trip?"

Evelyn's eyelashes fluttered like trapped butterflies. The words "we're getting divorced" burned her tongue but remained unspoken.

Perhaps she wanted to preserve the illusion a little longer - even if the marriage existed only in other people's perceptions now.

The neon sign of 'Velvet Martini' buzzed to life as they entered. Sophia stirred her cosmopolitan absently. "Zoe, you're scaring me. What's really going on?"

Evelyn took a fortifying sip of her gin fizz before deflecting. "How's wedding planning with Lucas going?"

Sophia groaned dramatically. "Ugh, don't remind me." She twirled a braid around her finger. "Between my father, Aunt Lydia, and the entire Laurent family breathing down my neck... It's like they think this arranged marriage will magically fix everything."

She leaned in conspiratorially. "And between us? Lucas is insufferable. We argue about everything from music preferences to proper tea brewing temperatures." A dramatic shudder. "Plus, did you know his ex was Victoria's Secret model Valentina Rossi? I saw photos - the woman has legs for days and a backside that could launch ships."

Evelyn's drink paused halfway to her lips as a familiar figure materialized behind Sophia's chair. She opened her mouth to warn her friend, but Sophia's rant had reached terminal velocity.

"...and if you think I'm exaggerating about his temper, just last week he threw a cello bow across the room because-"

Evelyn reached out and pinched Sophia's arm sharply.

"Ow! What was that for? I'm just saying the man has the emotional regulation of a-"

Sophia's words died as she followed Evelyn's gaze. Lucas stood at the bar, collecting two tumblers of amber liquid. She shrank into her seat. "Tell me he didn't hear any of that."

"Not a word," Evelyn lied smoothly.

Lucas turned, his sharp features illuminated by the bar's mood lighting. "Fancy seeing you two here alone."

Evelyn forced a smile. "Cousin! Here with friends?"

Lucas's eyebrow arched. "'Cousin'? That's new."

"Family should stick together," Evelyn said brightly, slinging an arm around Sophia's stiff shoulders. "Isn't that right, future cousin-in-law?"

Sophia elbowed her sharply. "In your dreams, Vanderbilt."

Lucas's gaze flickered between them. "Join us in the VIP lounge."

Evelyn practically dragged a resisting Sophia through the crowded bar. The private room revealed Adrian Boucher holding court among a group of sharply dressed men.

"Adrian!" Sophia broke free to claim the empty seat beside the actor. "Since when does the king of 18-hour workdays do social calls?"

Adrian's famous smile flashed. "Even workaholics get nights off." His gaze lifted to Evelyn hovering in the doorway. "Ms. Vanderbilt. Unexpected pleasure."

Evelyn nodded and retreated to a secluded corner booth. The other men - clearly industry elites from their designer watches and confident postures - greeted Sophia with easy familiarity. Their attention soon returned to Adrian, who was recounting some Hollywood anecdote.

From her shadowed perch, Evelyn watched the scene unfold - the way Lucas's fingers drummed impatiently on his glass, how Adrian's laugh never quite reached his eyes, and Sophia's animated gestures as she argued some point about method acting.

The ice in her drink cracked loudly in the brief silence between conversations. Evelyn realized with sudden clarity that she was the only one here who didn't belong.